A cooking appliance is an electric home appliance that is used to cook food by heating. A cooking appliance that includes a cavity or chamber for cooking food is generally called an oven.
The cavity is a structural element constituting the frame of the cooking appliance. The cavity may define a space in which food is heated using a heater. The cavity is generally manufactured using a steel sheet. In this case, the cavity is generally coated with enamel for easy cleaning.
A sheathed heater is generally used as a heater for heating food in the cooking space. In addition, a charcoal heater, a halogen heater, a ceramic heater, or a radiation heater may also be used. That is, there are various kinds of heaters that are capable of generating heat using electrical energy, and can be used as the heating source for the cooking appliance. A broil heater is a heater that is used to broil food using direct heat or radiant heat, and a bake heater is a heater that is disposed at the lower part of the cavity to heat the entire cavity. A convection heater is a heater that generates hot air in the cavity and, together with a fan, may improve the uniformity with which food is cooked, and a warming heater is a low-power heater that is used to warm dishes or to keep cooked food warm.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a double oven having two cavities as a conventional cooking appliance, and FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the double oven shown in FIG. 1.
In general, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a cooking appliance 1 includes a cabinet 10 defining the external appearance of the cooking appliance 1. Cavities 50 and 55 are provided in the cabinet 10. One cavity may be provided, or a plurality of cavities may be provided.
The cabinet 10 may include a side panel 11 and a rear panel 12. Doors 40 and 45 may be mounted by a hinge to the cabinet 10 or the cavities 50 and 55. Cooking spaces defined in the cavities 50 and 55 may be opened and closed by opening and closing the doors 40 and 45. That is, a user may open or close the doors 40 and 45 while holding handles 41 and 46. The doors 40 and 45 are pull-down doors, which may be pulled downward in a frontward direction in a state in which the handles 41 and 46 are held.
The cooking appliance may further include a cooktop 20 in addition to the cavities 50 and 55. The cooktop 20 may be provided at the upper surface of the cooking appliance 1. The cooktop 20 may define the upper surface of the cooking appliance 1.
The cooking appliance 1 may further include a control panel 30. The user may manipulate the cooking appliance 1 using the control panel 30. The user may also check a state of operation of the cooking appliance 1 through the control panel 30. A control panel cover 31 may be provided at the rear of the control panel 30. Consequently, the rear panel 12 and the control panel cover 31 may define the rear surface of the cooking appliance 1.